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ACADEMIC WORK.
Presentation for the annual Oxford-Cambridge Exchange Pam Sammons and Linda Bakkum
WHAT IS RESEARCH?
Research is a disciplined attempt to address questions or solve problems through the collection and analysis of primary data for the purpose of description, explanation, generalization and prediction (Anderson 1998, p 6)
The nature of the subject matter determines what kind of research is valid or relevant (Pring 2000, p 6)
Reasoning: deductive (Aristotle) formal steps of logic inductive (Bacon) empirical evidence for verification Inductive-deductive moving from observations to hypotheses then back to implications (backwards & forwards).
The distancing of theory from practice is associated with public and policy scepticism about value of educational research Need for clarity in defining key terms identified from your literature review and as used in your study e.g. good effective competent teacher, what it means to be an educated person Need to attend to the logic of the discourse the rules implicit in the use of particular words and those to which they are logically related For Dewey education concerned the development of the distinctively human capacities of knowing understanding, judging; behaving intelligently (Pring 2000, p 12) What that makes your study distinctive in relation to the field of education?
The attempt to make sense of the activities, policies and institutions which, through the organisation of learning, help to transform the capacities of people to live a fuller, more distinctively human life. The distinctive focus of educational research must be upon the quality of learning and thereby teaching Much writing sets up a false dichotomy between different research traditions Variety in approaches to educational research is desirable, depending on questions explored and philosophical position Is it the real world that we observe or one interpreted through my own personal & subjective scheme of things? What is the connection between language and the world language is used to describe? After Pring (2000)
All links to notion of clarity in writing and argument & demonstrating critical engagement with substantive, theoretical & methodological literature
WHAT IS...?
A research design is an integrated statement of and justification for the technical decisions involved in planning a research project (Blaikie, Designing Social Research, p. 15). A research project is a temporary organisation that is created with the purpose of carrying out systematic and rigorous enquiry to address a particular problem arising from a gap in knowledge (a theoretical puzzle, a pragmatic need etc).
the beliefs about the nature of (social) reality or of a phenomenon (including self and other what exists, what it looks like, what units make it up and how these units interact with each other) - ontology the beliefs about the nature of educational research knowledge (and its relationships to other kinds of knowledge) - epistemology the beliefs about principles and values (including the right, the good and the virtuous) in the practice of educational research - axiology
Constructivism
Pragmatic?
HOW DOES THIS AFFECT YOUR CHOICE OF: RESEARCH AIMS & QUESTIONS? RESEARCH DESIGN & METHODOLOGY?
Some researchers have argued that it may be appropriate to think of Qualitative & Quantitative as being on a continuum Gray and Densten (1998), Tashakkori & Teddlie 2003 Qualitative and quantitative choices viewed as polar opposites may be viewed as a false dualism (Frazer 1995) Can you clarify & justify your own view and approach in your study? How has your view evolved over the course of your PhD research?
RESEARCH QUESTIONS
Awareness of political implications Related to previous research Significant Ethical Practical use (relevant) fun (interesting to you)
CLARITY
The question(s) in your study should be answerable i.e can be illuminated or addressed by your methodology (you are looking to find the answer to a genuine question) The question should be intelligible to the reader who may not be an expert in your topic (understandable) The questions should offer the prospect of making an original contribution to knowledge in some way (methodologically theoretically empirically etc) Are the terms clearly defined? Are the questions precise?
EMPIRICAL FOCUS
Require that you generate data to answer question Lead you to determine methods of enquiry and data collection NB it is usually most appropriate for methods to follow questions; different types of questions will lead to different approaches to research and methods of data collection, but this is not always the case
source: Ingrid Lunt.
Reflect on your own Research aims/RQs: How have they evolved over the course of your study How far have they driven your choice of design & methodology and the specific methods you are using?
SIGNIFICANT
Is there a clear rationale for the question? So what? Does this question matter? Why is it of interest and to whom?
AIMS AND CLAIMS Explanatory Explanatory Descriptive Prescriptive Descriptive Explanatory Explanatory Descriptive Understanding Interpretative
What happened in the past/ how to make sense of the past? How can we understand a situation?
Historical research
Critique Emancipatory
As by Alis Oancea.
Practical Considerations
These can affect choice of research topic, formulation of research questions, choice of methods, choice of research design and instruments, ethics, sample & process of data collection, interpretation of data and findings, conclusions, reporting and dissemination Need be self-reflective, and to exhibit reflexivity about the part played by the researchers own values and their potential influence on research process and outcomes
Existing knowledge base on topic, is this a new topic of interest? (generation or testing of theory more appropriate?), resources available, availability/interest of participants All social research is a coming together of the ideal and the feasible As by Alis Oancea.
The value determined nature of enquiry in anti- positivist research such as Critical theory and Constructivism, Advocacy and activism encouraged, researcher transformative intellectual or passionate participant What can be known is mediated by interaction between investigator and subject of investigation For constructivists there are multiple realities, that depend on the individuals or groups holding constructions, constructions may change/be altered and thus so can realities Researcher and subject are interactively linked and findings are created through hermeneutical and dialectical techniques and are relative Aims to critique & transform (critical theory) or to understand & reconstruct, subject to continuous revisions.
Choice of research area Formulation of research questions Choice of method Formulation of research design & data collection techniques Implementation of data collection Interpretation of data Conclusions drawn
BODIES OF KNOWLEDGE
Theories, propositions and explanations accumulated through enquiry, criticism, argument and counter argument. What has survived testing and criticismpublic property. Their credentials depend upon their being open to public challenge and refutation. Any body of knowledge can only be provisional and is open to further challenge through criticism.. The link between knowledge & certainty is broken. Disciplined, critical and reflective thinking is the mark of educational research, at odds with unquestioning common sense beliefs.
POINTS TO ESTABLISH IN EXAMINING DIFFERENT RESEARCH APPROACHES & IN CRITICAL READING OF RESEARCH
Validity
Reliability
Using extreme (most/least likely to fit theory), atypical, and critical cases
Often concerns: honesty, credibility, richness, authenticity, depth, scope, subjectivity, strength of feeling, capturing uniqueness, idiographic statements, fidelity to participants accounts
Dependability, consistency, comprehensiveness, checkability, empathy, uniqueness, explanatory and descriptive potential, confirmability, neutrality, applicability, transferability
As by Alis Oancea.
STRATEGIES FOR...
Generalisability
Reliability
Careful, sometimes strategic selection of cases Intense participation and effort to develop valid and rich descriptions Challenging theories, conventional wisdom, and prior assumptions Letting the case talk back sensitivity to diversity, uniqueness, history and context
Good preparation for fieldwork Piloting and peer and participant debriefing Justification of decisions (e.g. transcription; recording; types of questions; extent of mapping and summarising in case presentation etc.) Awareness of transcriber selectivity and other limitations Independent audits and audit trails Multiple coders
As by Alis Oancea.
Making contrast/comparisons Ruling out spurious relations Following up surprises Using extreme cases Assessing rival explanations Triangulation Back translation
As by Alis Oancea.
Validity
Reliability
Can findings be generalised outside the sample? Importance of sample Concept of statistical probability
Measurement valididy, face validity, concurrent validity predictive validity, construct validity, convergent validity Role of confidence intervals
Dependability
Replicability Internal reliability Inter-observer consistency
STRATEGIES FOR...
Generalisability
Validity
Reliability
Careful sample selection. Random selection can be useful because of known properties. Be cautious with making inferences.
Test Retest Chronbach Alpha Multiple coders Consider the consistency of your observations. Controllable, predictable, consistent, replicable. (Cohen et al. 2007)
Careful sampling
At best strive to minimize invalidity and maximize validity
Strategies
All the same problems as with Quant and Qual! But also: Design choice Data synthesis Can your data inform one another? Two separate studies? Quant and Qual findings dont match? Skill and confidence in both research approaches? Should be more than the sum of its parts.
Careful design of each (Qual and Quant) component. Think about how your data might be used to inform one another.
If not confident with a particular method, hit the books, ask for help!
QUAN
MIXED METHOD
QUAL
MM Designs characterised by
Multiple positions along each attribute traditionally assumed to distinguish QUAN & QUAL eg they have both confirmatory and exploratory research questions They are near the end of one continuum on one attribute ( eg inductive questions but near the other end of the continuum on another attribute eg statistical analysis)
Multiple Method Designs (more than 1 method or more than 1 world view A. Multi method designs ( more than 1 method but restricted to within 1 world view (eg Quan/Quan or Qual/Qual) B. Mixed methods designs (use of QUAL & QUAN)
Mixed method research (occurs only in methods stage of a study) Mixed model research (can occur in all stages of a study )
MM Designs characterised by
Multiple positions along each attribute traditionally assumed to distinguish QUAN & QUAL eg they have both confirmatory & exploratory research questions They are near the end of one continuum on one attribute ( eg inductive questions but near the other end of the continuum on another attribute eg statistical analysis ) Multiple Method Designs (more than 1 method or more than 1 world view) Multi method designs ( more than 1 method but restricted to within 1 world view eg Quan/Quan or Qual/Qual) Mixed methods Designs (use of Quan & Qual methods/data collection/analysis strategies) 1. Mixed Method research (occurs in the methods stage of study only) 2. Mixed Model research (can occur in all stages of a study) Concurrent Mixed Method design one kind of question simultaneously addressed by collecting & analysing QUAN & QUAL data then one type inference made from both sources Concurrent mixed Model 2 strands of research with both types of question, both types of data & both types of analysis then both types of inferences are pulled together to create meta-inferences at the end
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Data Collection
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Data Analysis
Data Analysis
Inference
Purpose / Question
Purpose / Question
Data Collection
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Inference
Purpose / Question
Purpose / Question
Data Collection
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Inference
Your
research will be informed by your readings. reading of the literature is a major part of good research!
Critical
HOW TO READ RESEARCH ARTICLES CRITICALLY (AN APPRECIATION OF STRENGTHS & WEAKNESSES/LIMITATIONS)
Identify research aims/questions? Identify nature/type of study (scholarly review, empirical work, new or secondary analysis) Identify ontological position, epistemological & methodological assumptions Is researchers value position explicit? Identify location, date, sample, methods used Examine use of theory, deductive? Inductive? Are analysis methods clearly explained ? Are conclusions appropriately supported by evidence ? What are the implications for policy/practice?
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FINAL COMMENTS
No study can be perfect Research rigour is about clarity of research process throughout Justifying your choices, design, interpretations, conclusions Persuasion of arguments re original contribution Awareness of strengths & limitations How your research fits into existing body of knowledge Implications for policy practice, future directions for research
Your viva involves an oral defence a justification of the rigour of your research to probe your understanding and ownership of your study It is helpful to practice thinking, talking about and presenting your study with special attention to demonstrating rigour